Scottish digital start-up expands into Pakistan
Scotland’s fast-growing social and digital media consultancy 448 Studio has added an overseas team to its award-winning operation.
The company now has a dedicated digital product development unit based in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, 448 Studio has been undertaking pioneering work helping UK higher education institutions adapt seamlessly to online learning and teaching.
The company, based in Renfrewshire, also runs an annual 24-hour global online conference for the education sector called All Day All Night. The conference made its debut just weeks after the start of the 2020 UK-wide lockdown, offering participants a fully-fledged virtual event.
All Day All Night operated using an online platform Forumm developed by 448 Studio. Forumm is an all-in-one, customisable virtual conference and event platform that comes with unique features such as full HD live streaming capabilities.
The developers working in Pakistan are now making the Forumm platform an increasingly sophisticated tool. Also at the forefront of their work is accessibility and the ambition that all users will share equal access to information and functionality online.
448 Studio CEO and founder, Daniel Marrable, said: “Our company has secured a strong foothold in the education sector over the past 3 years.
“Since the outbreak of Covid 19 the 448 team has seen a massive shift to online adaptations of in person academic and educational conferences and events.s. As ‘normality’ begins to return very slowly, the methods for learning and teaching disciplines have totally metamorphosed as attendees expect to have a variety of options that fit their learning needs.
“We have had the privilege of working on some innovative academic conferences over the last eighteen months which has led our team to create the optimal online and hybrid tool for the Higher Education market.”
The complexities of developing the operation bridging two continents was managed by 448 Studio's Chief Operating Officer, Eric Kim. Eric leads the company's broadcast team during live events but also deals with finances and staffing.
Heading the developers based in Islamabad is Junaid Malik, a computational architect who studied at the Glasgow School of Art. Junaid had to negotiate big logistical obstacles at the outset, as Covid-19 travel restrictions continually hampered his journeys to build his team in Pakistan.
Junaid said: “The business trips may have been a nightmare, but it sure has been an interesting career journey, developing interdisciplinary skills linking architecture and computation.
“My team, based in Islamabad, will not only work on the Forumm platform but we’re actively seeking new clients who need development work. Everything will be organised through our Scottish-based office, and we will continue to build our UK-based development team. However, our Pakistan office gives us a level of expertise that is second to none, delivered by a team that has a vast experience in developing cross platform applications.”
For more information contact: Phil Taylor – hello@448.studio (44) 07810 860701
About 448 Studio:
The company, founded in 2018, offers social media workshops, training and consultancy that supports the public sector and higher education. 448 Studio works with research and academic groups to ensure they have all the tools and confidence to share their research and knowledge effectively. Now more than ever the sharing of accurate information and global networking is crucial. 448 Studio has developed a full support programme and academic network tailored for those in research and education.